The Secret Book
by MiraClarinet
Summary: New girl Iana struggles to find her place in a band that hates her. As she tries to uphold the traditions from her old school, she finds that when traditions mix, bigger, better traditions can come to be. T for possible violence and light language
1. Real Gone

_**So, I'm going to try and challenge myself to write this using song titles for chapter names. After every chapter, I will put down why I chose that particular song for the title. Oh, and I'm starting a bit weird. You will se what I mean. Just a bit of background: Someone has just called out to the main character.**_

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I looked across the hall to the source of the voice. Toka stood next to her brother, Shiho. Down the hall, Kiki sat on the floor fiddling with her flip folder.

"What room are you in?" Toka repeated.

"215." I replied, gesturing toward the door I was standing in front of. Toka's face fell.

"I don't know who else is in there. I'm in room 200 with Trisha. Kiki is with Adri in 204 and Shiho is with Ash downstairs in 123." She sighed.

"I don't know either. Mrs. Acoshai said it was some girl named Iana. I'm guessing it is a freshman, but I'm not sure." I sighed as well. At least the triplets were rooming with friends. I was stuck with a freshman girl I had never met before. "I'm going to go put my stuff in my room." I slid the key into the lock and went inside, closing the door behind me.

The room was painted a light blue with pale blue curtains and trimmings. The comforters were just a bit darker then the curtains, with polka dots colored different shades of blue, and white sheets. The comforter matched the pillows. A desk sat in one corner, and in the other corner a light pine wardrobe with blue trimmings sat slightly open.

Even more mind numbing was what sat on one of the beds. It had bright ginger hair down to its mid-back. It wore a short-sleeved green hoody and dark denim Bermuda shorts. It sat cross-legged on the bed. Right away, I could tell it wasn't a freshman. In fact, it looked more my age.

"I hope you don't mind that I already chose a bed." It spoke? Its face grew red as I sat blinking at it, hoping it would disappear when I reopened my eyes.

It wouldn't go away.

"I'm Iana, a junior." It attempted to introduce itself. I blinked again. _Junior? _I turned away, trying to pretend it wasn't there, didn't exist. I placed my bag on the opposite bed, my back turned to the thing on the other bed.

A knock on the door. A voice called from outside "drum majors need to meet with Mrs. Acoshai in the band room" then light footsteps faded out before the voice appeared again, fainter, as if farther down the hall. I knew the voice was the only male drum major, Justin, and that the second door he stopped at was Toka's.

"Does he knock on everyone's door?" It asked. I could feel its green eyes burning into my back. "Did I do something wrong?" I ignored it. She would find out. Eventually.

I opened the door and left, almost hitting Toka. She took one glance at me before she realized what was going on. I closed the door behind me and lead the way to the band room.

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_**Eep, a bit short. If this one is short, the next one will likely be shorter, and I know chapter 3 will be shorter. I'll have to try and fix that. **_

_**Who is Iana? Why won't Rini talk to her? Think you have a guess? Will, tell me in a review! If you don't have a guess, review anyway! **_

_**Reviewers get cake and ice cream! With cookies on top!**_

_**Real Gone: In this song, in I think it is the second verse it talks about "a new kid in town". Well, Iana is the new kid in the school, so I thought it fit. And the way Rini is treating her, it also kind of fits with the song. **_


	2. You Belong With Me

_**Okay, chapter 2: You Belong With Me. Yeah, the name doesn't fit maybe the first half, but It becomes slightly obvious towards the middle. Don't quote me on this because, well, I write my author's notes before the actual chapter. And this chapter I started to write at school like 1 and 3, but spent two class hours trying to think of a name for it. Then when I got to the actual chapter, I wrote a paragraph, then the bell rang. Whoever said "saved by the bell" lied. And I know the part I did write in class is kind of crapish. Sorry. I'll try to fix it as I type. I also had a math problem written in it. Yeah, I do my work in the same notebook as I write stories, but I don't normally write work on my stories. Oopsies. **_

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I stood between Toka and Justin. Mrs. Acoshai, our band director, stood in front of us. I could see the tenseness of my two friends, and realized I was tense myself. We were prepared to snap to attention at any moment, though I knew we all hoped we wouldn't have to.

"I hope you found your rooms all right." We relaxed as Mrs. A smiled. We nodded in relief. "At rehearsal today we are starting with introductions, to get to know all the freshman. During this time, you will be in your own sections. Do whatever you wish to get to know each other; games, simple hellos, whatever. Just get it done. Once you think you have everyone in your section memorized, come see me an you can start working on your salute and working out who will do what on field. At noon, we will have lunch. During lunch time, I do not want anybody in the rooms. Room halls will be off limits, and let the section leaders know that they need to relay this information to their sections. You are to remain in this hallway, outside, and on campus. Because students will not be allowed in the halls, they are to ring their instruments to introductions. If you get bored during introductions, pull out your instruments and have sectionals. After lunch, it will be indoor rehearsal." We nodded our understanding. "Tokamya, when I dismiss you, I want you to let all the girls from rooms 200 to 210 know they need their instruments, and that rehearsal is starting. Rini, you tell rooms 210 to 220. Justin, you are in charge of all of the boys. If you need to, have your roommate help you." We nodded once again.

"Do you want us to have our instruments as well, or will we be conducting the whole rehearsal?" I asked. Mrs. A thought for a moment.

"Bring them, but I don't know if you will need them."

"Oh, I'm sorry to intrude. I guess I'm a bit early for rehearsal." We all turned to look towards the door of the college band room. I recognized the tall boy right away. The cutest boy in band, and also the best trumpet player any of us had ever seen. He blushed, an embarrassed smile etched across his face. "I thought we were starting at 8:30."

"Not until 9, Keshi." Mrs. A laughed. We all laughed as well.

"I though I told you this." Justin laughed. "Well, that saves me the trouble of locating you. Can you tell the boys in room 110 to 120 to bring their instruments to rehearsal?" Keshi nodded.

"Will do. I'll leave my instrument in here." He set his trumpet down by the door, looking slightly disappointed. Like all of us, he felt naked without an instrument in his hands, and it was obvious. I loved him as much as I loved band.

But I knew I didn't have a chance.

Keshi had a girlfriend. A pretty guard girl named Kay. She was hated by most of the girls. She got the cutest boys, yet she had never deserved them. She was a spoiled brat, and extremely blonde, despite her jet black hair. It took her hours to get the easiest joke. Nobody knew why every boy fell for her. She would date them for a year, and then another cute boy would come around. She would dump her boyfriend to be with this other boy, leaving him heartbroken.

"Dismissed, all three of you." Mrs. A broke me out of my thoughts.

"Yes ma'am!" We chorused, walking out of the room quickly.

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_**Okay, that was way better then the single paragraph in my notebookXD Next chapter tells you a bit about Rini's roommate, who will be sharing POVs with Rini in my story, since it technically is about her. **_

_**You belong With Me: Mid-chapter, Keshi comes in. Rini is obviously in love with him, but he is dating another girl. **_


	3. Unwritten

_**Okay, this chapter has a bit about Rini's roommate, under her pov. It isn't after the drum major meeting though. This chapter happens during to after the meeting.**_

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I stared after my roommate. If this girl was drum major, I couldn't help but worry about my fate with the rest of the band. Did I do something wrong already? Or was this how they treated every new student?

I stood up and made my way to the desk. I sat down and pulled a pad of paper from my bag. I smiled when I saw the doodes etched on the front cover. I opened to the first page. A note was written In bright yellow ink.

_You may not be a Black Tiger anymore, but you _

_Can still uphold our traditions._

After the note were a bunch of signatures. I slid my finger over each one, imagining their faces, their voices speaking to me. All my friends, my band family. I wanted to cry.

I flipped through the pages. Empty. Silent. Crying for attention. I held back my tears. Who would help me fill the pages? Only one page held anything of interest. On it, a single paragraph was written in the same handwriting as the note. It was titled 'The Secret Book.' I read the words below:

_What more is a notebook but a pad of paper?_

_Empty lines with no meaning, words thought but never written._

_Each book is a collection of memories, a collection of thoughts meant to escape. _

_But our book, our secret book, holds more. It holds friendship. Kept hidden from prying eyes,_

_Our secrets,_

_Our memories_

_Are kept safe._

As I finished reading, I heard the key turn n the lock. I quickly shut the book and stored it back in my bag. I tried to act as if I had been cleaning my instrument, since it had been sitting nearby. In walked my roommate. Her eyes locked on my clarinet, widening, while something glinted in them that scared me.

"Rehearsal is starting soon. Bring that." Her eyes never left my instrument. I was slightly excited that she spoke, but the coldness in her voice told me that she had no other choice. It hurt more then her silence. Why did she hate me?

"Um, what room do I go to?" I ventured, hoping to make her speak more.

"The one that says band room." She sounded like she had never heard a stupider question. This would be a long band camp.

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_**Wow, this one was even shorter then I though it would be! Sorry! I've exhausted my at school writings, so from now on everything I write will be original, not altered like these last three. But never fear, for I think I tend to write better with the original, I mean, look at last chapter, which was mostly off the top of my head stuff. **_

_**Unwritten: It is fairly obvious. "Staring at the blank page before you" **_


	4. I Hate Myself For Losing You

I left the room without saying anything else. I heard the door close and footsteps follow me out.

"I told you where it was. You don't have to follow me." I growled.

"I-I was just trying to get to the right room. Besides, we are going the same place. Why can't we walk together?" It asked.

"Because I will be seen with you." I realized what I had said too late. Her footsteps stopped. I turned to see her face filled with deep sadness. What had I done? "Look, I-"

"I don't care. If you don't want to be seen with me, then you won't have to be seen with me. Just forget I exist." I couldn't tell if it was about to cry or explode, but I didn't want to stick around to find out. I whirled around on my heel, biting my lip. I was supposed to be showing my band how to act, I was supposed to be leading by example. Yet here I was harassing the new girl, just because I didn't know her. What kind of person was I? Kay? I shivered at the thought as I made my way down the stairs. I had stooped down to Kay's level. I was her now. And I didn't like it.

"You look upset." I almost jumped out of my skin as I reached the bottom of the stairs. I turned to see Keshi standing next to Justin. The male drum major held his trumpet in his hands, while Keshi just had his music.

"I…Its nothing." It was tempting to tell them what happened, but I didn't want them to think of me the same way I was thinking of myself.

I shifted my case from one hand to the other. Justin looked at me as if he knew I wasn't telling him something, but I just turned and continued on my way. It took only about a minute to reach the band room, and I could feel Justin's gaze on me the whole time.

"We're back, and our errand is done." I announced as we entered.

"Good. Just sit up here and relax until everyone comes." Mrs. A gave us a smile. "Keshi, you can sit in your section." She added to the only non-drum major in the room. Keshi shrugged and sat down, polishing his trumpet in boredom.

"How many new people are here this year?" Justin asked.

"about twenty freshman, and a girl who just moved her from France." Mrs. A replied. She turned to me. "I expect you have already met Iana?" I gave a nod, gulping. If I had felt terrible before, now I felt like I could curl up in a hole and die. This poor girl had moved to a whole different continent, and I had treated her like a pile of crap. What a great first impression of American society.

"You know this new girl?" Keshi asked, looking up from his now shiny silver trumpet.

"She is my roommate." I replied, trying to sound like nothing was bothering me.

"I did that on purpose. I figured you would be kinder to her then most of the other students." Mrs. A smiled. Now, I felt sick to the stomach. I had been trusted to make this girl feel welcome, and instead I made her feel like an outcast. I pretended to read through my music, conducting with my finger in an attempt to memorize our opener. To tell the truth, I was more distracted then I let on. I wasn't Kay. I was worse. I was Kay if she had been thrown into a hole full of radioactive waste and kidnapped by a madman who brainwashed her into attempting to destroy the world. And that was an understatement.

As students slowly entered the room, a low roar filled my ears. Excited talking, discussing room numbers and buddies, and preparing for band camp. To my distress, my roommate sat alone, like most of the freshman, but at least the freshman were talking amongst themselves. She was silent, her eyes wide and scared.

"Alright, as you know, we will be starting with introductions. Now I will assign you rooms to get to know each other." The group was immediately silent as Mrs. A spoke. "Flutes, you will be in the choir room. Clarinets, since you are our largest section, you will be in the cafeteria. Trumpets, you will join them since you are large as well, but I want you on separate halves of the cafeteria. Saxophones, you will be in the dance room. Low brass in the auditorium. Percussion, on stage. You can close the stage curtains for privacy. Guard, you can hang out in here. And yes, mellophones, you are considered low brass for now." a freshman boy slowly lowered his hand, which had shot up. "If we don't have any questions, then disperse to your rooms. Section leaders, come see me before you go."

"Do drum majors count as section leaders?" Toka asked.

"I have already told you three what to do, Tokamya. So no, you don't need to stick around. Just head off to your sections and try to keep it as close to calm as you can." Mrs. A replied. Toka nodded, her face contorting at the use of her full name. All of the triplets hated being called their excruciatingly long names. Unfortunately for them, Mrs. A rarely called anybody by their nicknames.

"Mrs. A, do you want the guard captains as well?" Kay came up from where the guard had been seated.

"Yes I do Kaylinn." Mrs. A replied, gesturing for the other guard captain, Josie, to join them. We didn't stick around much longer. Justin was the first of the drum majors to leave, followed by me and then Toka. As I left, I took a quick glance at the corner where the new girl had been sitting. She was gone.

Mrs. A wasn't over exaggerating when she said you do our best to keep our sections calm. Justin and I walked into the cafeteria to find an argument about which was better, trumpets or clarinets. Did I mention the second reason I could never ask Keshi out? Oh, yeah, well, our two sections had it out for each other. Inter-dating between the trumpet section and clarinet section were highly forbidden.

"Tree suckers!" A trumpet boy cried.

"Your mouths probably taste like metal!" A clarinet girl countered.

"Better then getting splinters on my lips!"

"Cold as ice, that's what your lips are!"

"Was that a mouse I heard? Oh wait, just a clarinet player."

"At least we won't go deaf."

"Might make your ears bleed though!"

"Band, Ten-Hut!" Justin and I called together. Every student in the cafeteria snapped to attention.

"What is going on in here?" I snapped. Nobody dared to reply. "We leave two sections alone for a minute and we come in to fight them ready to slit each other's throats! That isn't how we should treat our fellow band members, section rivalry or not!" I knew my words wouldn't reach them, but it would at least quell the bickering long enough to have our introductions.

"Trumpets, you are better then this. Mrs. A told us to stay on a different part of the cafeteria then the clarinets so this wouldn't happen. Can I not expect you to follow simple orders like that?" Now it was Justin's turn to scold his section.

"The clarinets are near us too!" One of the three female trumpets pointed out.

"Clarinets are on their half." Justin pointed out.

"But we want that half." A freshman whined.

"Neither of you should talk at attention." Justin pointed out. As the tenseness in the air died away, we allowed them all to relax. "Trumpets, to the opposite half." Justin commanded, just as the trumpet and clarinet section leaders entered the cafeteria. They looked surprised to see their sections so close without any fighting, until they saw our death glares. Pumpkin followed his section with a confused look on his face, Justin right behind him. Rose blinked at her section, who were all sharing glances. Right away, she caught my roommate, who had stayed hidden and well away from the fighting.

"Why, hello there. You look too old to be a freshman!" Rose wasn't shy. At all. She was probably the most outgoing in the clarinet section.

"I-I'm Iana. I just moved here from France, and I'm a junior, not a freshman." For the first time I realized the girl had a thick French accent. Her English was surprisingly fluent.

"Foreign exchange or permanent?" Rose asked.

"Permanent. We moved here with my grandmother, since she needs some assistance but is to independent for a senior home." The girl replied, blushing. Rose smiled.

"I think you will like it here." She laughed. Iana didn't look convinced. I hoped she wouldn't explain why she didn't believe Rose. What would my section do if they knew I treated someone like I did?

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_**Okay, night and day difference in length. I didn't mention Iana's French accent because, well, I didn't think of making her French until this chapter. I quite enjoyed writing the whole arguement between trumpets and clarinetsXD**_

_**I Hate Myself for Losing You: It is only the fourth chapter and it is already excruciatingly difficult to think up song titles to match my story. This one took about half an hour, with the help of my sister. Finally, I came up with this. Because the chapter is about Rini beating herself up for being mean to the new girl. **_


	5. Welcome to the Family

_**Another Iana POV! Now, we get to meet a bunch of the clarinet section! Yay!**_

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I kept my eyes locked on my roommate, Rini, as the outgoing section leader told us what we were doing. I could see her eyes lock on mine, but I was surprised to see not bitterness, but a glint of sincere regret. What was she regretting?

"We will go around the circle. Say your name, and then your grade and something about yourself. I'll start. My name is Rose, but I actually hate the smell of roses." Everyone laughed slightly at this. 'I'm a senior."

"I'm Katrina, but I go by Kat, a sophomore, and I enjoy eating bananas." A short girl with dark blond hair who had been sitting next to Rose said.

"I'm Anne, a junior, and I can't resist a cute puppy."

"I'm Jonathon, but I go by Jojo. I'm a freshman, and I don't like chocolate."

"I'm Patricia, and a senior. My nickname is Breezy, because I am really slow to catch on." All the older people laughed. Finally, it came to me. I gulped.

"My name is Iana, and I'm a junior. I have played every instrument you can find in a marching band." I couldn't think of anything else.

"Wow, sounds like Rini!" Rose joked. My roommate shot her a death glare. Now, it was her turn.

"I'm Rini, a junior. I-" She looked at me, "Feel like a huge jerk at the moment." I was surprised at her words. Everyone blinked confusedly.

"I don't think you are a jerk." Breezy pointed out.

"I am." Rini sighed.

"Why?"

"I don't feel like talking about it." She looked away from all of us. Rose looked utterly confused, but they moved on.

"Next game! Mix the circle!" Rini and Rose stayed where they were while we all switched places. "Alright, now is one I like. Everyone says something they will bring to a picnic. It has to be something with the first letter of your first name or your nickname, like roses or rutabagas for me. It doesn't have to make sense. You have to repeat what everyone above you said." Now I was glad I was second. I could remember playing this in my old band in France. "Again, I'll start. My name is Rose and I will bring Rini."

"Thanks for the invite." Rini laughed, though her laugh was only half-hearted.

"This is Rose and she will bring Rini, I'm Iana and I will bring an igloo."

"Rose is brining Rini, Iana is bringing an igloo, and my name is Danni and I will bring a dragon." A freshman girl piped up.

"Rose is bringing Rini, Iana is bringing an igloo, Danni is bringing a dragon and I'm Heather and I will bring a hat." This girl was a sophomore. This continued until we made it to Rini. She repeated everyone's. She had a good memory.

"-and I'm Rini and I will bring a rabbit to eat Cassy's carrots." She laughed. The little junior girl pretended to be upset.

"But I grew them myself! So unappreciative of my hard gardening work!" We all laughed.

"My bunnies enjoy them though!" We were all laughing so hard at this.

"We can't hear ourselves think!" The drum major boy teased from across the cafeteria.

"It would help if you could think!" Rini teased back. He hot her a fake death glare, shaking his head. Now, my chest hurt from laughing at this.

"We have a better memory then you! We beat you in the memorization contest last year!" An older girl pointed out from the trumpet section.

"That is because trumpets have nothing else in their brains!"

"Hey Rini, how many trumpets does it take to screw in a light bulb?"

"I don't know Cassy, how many?"

"One to put it in, another to tell them how much better they could have done it!"

"Hey Keshi! What do you call a clarinetist with half a brain?" This was the boy drum major.

"I don't know Justin!" I had to admit, this second boy was cute.

"Gifted!" The trumpet section burst out laughing, just as the band director walked in. She blinked in confusion.

"Uh, I do hope everything is going well in here. Justin and Rini, Tokamya is waiting for you in the band room, when you are done." she coughed.

"Erm, yes Mrs. A" Rini slipped off her seat on top of the table. Justin walked over to her, a wide smile on his face. Rose stuck her tongue out at him jokingly.

"Ha-ha, you know I didn't mean it." He laughed.

"See you guys later." Both of them called as they left the cafeteria.

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_**Another hard chapter to find a song for. **_

_**Welcome to the Family: Band feels like a family to me, so this song works.**_


	6. Let me Be Your Friend

_**It skips a bit to lunchtime, just letting you know so you don't get too confused.**_

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I looked around the cafeteria. How could I have come in so late? There was almost nowhere left to sit. I sighed and glanced to my left. One small spot open, but I didn't think even I could fit in that space. I glanced to my right, hoping for better luck. To my surprise, nearly half a table was remaining at the edge. I made my way over with my sandwich. To my distress, I saw the one person sitting there that I did not want to see. She noticed me as well, sending me a glare. I sighed inwardly. I would have to make it up to her sometime, and now, when we were alone, would be perfect.

"Hi." I ventured, sitting down across the table from her. She didn't say anything. "Look, I-"

"I don't want to hear it." She snapped. I sighed, staring down at my lunch. I was suddenly not hungry anymore. "I thought you didn't want to be seen around me." She added, trying to get me to leave.

"First of all, there is nowhere else to sit, secondly, I feel bad for what I said." I replied, pulling out a pen and paper. When I had nothing better to do, I would doodle and write in notebooks. The previous year I had filled two and a half, thanks to me brining markers to school, which is never a good idea.

"What are you doing?" Iana asked, eyeing me with curiosity.

"I draw when I don't have anything better to do, or when I am trying to keep my cool." I replied. "It calms me down, I guess."

"Me too. Me and my friends were always doodling in notebooks back in France." She smiled for the first time since I had met her. The guilt inside me slowly vanished as we began to get to know each other better. Who knew that one common interest would set off a friendship, when before we had been what seemed like enemies.

"When we get back to our room tonight, I have to show you something." She said suddenly, her green eyes glinting. I nodded as I looked at my watch. Had it really only been ten minutes? I looked at everybody in the cafeteria. I realized that both Kay and Keshi were nowhere in sight. Finally, the tall trumpet boy walks in, his face filled with deep grief. Kay followed him, a more triumphant, evil look on her face. Noticing the lack of seating, Keshi joined us at our lonely table.

"What happened?" I asked.

"Kay broke up with me." Keshi sighed.

"You upset?" I asked, my heart doing backflips. But deeper inside, I knew it still could never be. He was a trumpet, and though I was currently drum major, deep inside I was still a clarinet. And clarinet/trumpet relationships were strictly forbidden by the sections.

"Not really. I never really liked her too much. She just wouldn't accept a no." He shrugged, biting into his sandwich.

"I don't know this girl, but she doesn't seem very nice." Iana pointed out.

"Meanest guard girl in band." I explained.

"Hey Keshi, what are you doing over with _them_?" I recognized the boy who had called the clarinets tree suckers. He indicated me and Iana. "They are clarinets!"

"Your point is? I never understood why I can't be friends with someone in the clarinet section. Are you telling me you won't listen to Rini just because she plays the clarinet? She is your drum major." Keshi scolded. The boy looked surprised.

"I-I-" He stammered.

"Just go back to eating, Sam, and leave us in peace." Keshi ordered. Sam turned back to his group of friends, looking scared. I laughed.

"And you didn't go for section leader why?" I asked.

"Pumpkin Seed is a senior, while I'm a junior. I thought I would let him have a year of glory his last year of high school. I always have next year." he replied.

"Why did you just call him Pumpkin Seed?" Iana asked. I realized for the first time that she didn't know the origin of any of the weirder nicknames.

"He always has pumpkin seeds, for some reason. Nobody knows why. I remember my freshman year I commented about how much I liked pumpkin seeds, and he handed me a bag of them." Keshi laughed. I laughed as well, as did Iana.

"A lot of us just call him Pumpkin though." I added.

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_**Gr, back to the short chapters. Next chapter will hopefully be longer again. We will be going back to Iana's POV next chapter, and then we will do a giant time skip, like, all the way to the last day of band camp time skip.**_

_**Let me be Your friend: Uh, yeah, I think you can figure this one out. **_


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